Chapter 191: Midwifery is a Professional Job
"Ladies and gentlemen, today's match is about to begin."
Naruto took a sip of Happy Water, "The tempers of both contestants are very explosive; the trash-talk segment was short and sweet. Here they come, here they come! Shukaku leads with the ball and is the first to launch an attack!"
Visible rings of air exploded around Shukaku.
A massive amount of Chakra condensed into a cyan wind sphere.
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The wind sphere howled, kicking up waves of sand as it charged straight at Kurama.
Among the nine Tailed Beasts, Shukaku was undoubtedly the most skilled at using Ninjutsu.
Kurama narrowed its eyes, its right claw flashing with golden light.
The purpose of Ninjutsu is to better utilize the effects of Chakra.
But as long as there is enough Chakra, quantity can lead to a qualitative change.
It swiped a paw across.
Vast amounts of Chakra were vented recklessly, directly slapping the wind sphere into dissipation.
Seeing this, Shukaku was somewhat dissatisfied.
The Old Man was truly too unfair.
But fortunately, this was the desert.
"Oh my, oh my! Shukaku went from the backcourt to the frontcourt, a fast-break coast-to-coast, but he didn't score!"
Naruto's regretful tone echoed in the Sealing Space, "Kurama with a steal, completely unreasonable, truly showing the prestige of the boss!"
"Kurama, welcome to my kingdom!"
Shukaku let out a furious roar.
A massive crack split open in the desert where Kurama was standing.
Countless streams of quicksand began to sink downward.
Shukaku wanted to bury it in the sand and crush it to death.
"Arrogant talk!"
Kurama reacted quickly, its limbs pushing off the sides with sudden force as its massive body soared into the air.
In mid-air, it dropped its feet toward Shukaku.
"Could this move be the legendary Nine Heavens Thunderous Double-Footed Stomp?"
Naruto recalled his childhood days, "With such a startling attack, there isn't much time left for Shukaku!"
He could have acted as a pilot, remotely guiding Kurama.
However, for the sake of fairness, he didn't do so.
Being a commentator was also quite interesting, though unfortunately, there were no listeners.
Kurama's massive size, combined with the momentum of a falling object, gave this plain-looking kick an explosive power.
Shukaku stomped the ground, and quicksand soared up, forming a massive shield.
In the next moment, Kurama had no time to change course, and its feet sank directly into the sand wall.
"Die! You stinking fox!"
Shukaku took a deep breath, its belly bulging, then like a balloon, all the air erupted from its mouth.
The sand wrapping around Kurama instantly turned into sharper stones.
They showered down like a hail of bullets.
Because the distance was too close, Kuramacouldn't avoid it and was hit completely.
Although it was tough and thick-skinned, Shukaku's Ninjutsu was no joke; it let out yelps of pain from the beating.
"Wow, he scores! Shukaku charges in for a slam dunk! It's full of violent aesthetics."
Naruto waved his hands, speaking excitedly.
However, he suddenly remembered that a fox's cry was supposed to be a soft whimper.
You really are a fake fox.
Kurama didn't know about Naruto's internal roasting because it was currently exploding with rage.
Even with the desert buff, suffering a setback right at the start was truly humiliating.
It let out a roar and swiped its claws outward.
A wild wind immediately sent the sand and stones scattering.
Then its body accelerated, rushing in front of Shukaku and delivering a direct punch.
Under its extreme anger, endless Chakra erupted.
Although Shukaku managed to block part of it with a sand shield in time, its defense was still broken, and it let out a scream.
"Beast Dunk! The rim is going to shatter!"
Naruto watched intently, words spilling from his mouth, "Both contestants have abandoned technique and started a close-quarters brawl. Ah, Shukaku seems unable to hold his ground; the possibility of winning doesn't feel high, but there's still a theoretical hope for victory. Don't give up, big raccoon!"
At the level of a Tailed Beast, ordinary Ninjutsu no longer had much effect.
Even if it could narrow the gap, it was hard to fully compensate for it.
Naruto felt it was a bit of a pity.
He didn't have a phone.
Otherwise, he could have taken a photo to post on his social feed or something.
A massive sand wall cut off Kurama's line of sight.
Shukaku took this opportunity to catch its breath.
The punch-to-the-gut exchange just now had been extremely painful.
At the same time, it understood that it couldn't beat Kurama with Taijutsu alone.
Its advantage lay in the desert.
The geographical advantage.
Besides that, it had nothing else.
Shukaku's massive body retreated violently, and the moment it moved, the ground it had just passed over surged up.
Like a tsunami.
It turned into a giant wave spanning the horizon.
"Tricks of a small fry!"
Chakra surfaced on Kurama's body, and it smashed through the giant wave head-first.
"..."
Shukaku's expression grew increasingly grim.
It gritted its teeth, intending to use a Tailed Beast Ball.
Seeing its movements, Kurama knew it was at its wit's end and what it wanted to do.
Normally, it would also counter with a Tailed Beast Ball.
But now, it had a better idea.
"Naruto, lend me that move of yours."
"Oh, you're going to make a sword."
Needless to say, Naruto knew exactly which move it was talking about.
Under Shukaku's strange gaze, Kurama used Chakra to condense a forty-meter-long greatsword.
But because Shukaku was condensing a Tailed Beast Ball, it couldn't speak, nor was it easy to interrupt.
In any case, it didn't believe Kurama would use something like a sword.
The probability of that was the same as the probability of it beating Kurama up.
"Shukaku, take this sword!"
Kurama shouted excitedly.
Shukaku was stunned for a moment, then found itself uncontrollably canceling the Tailed Beast Ball, catching the long sword with both hands, and kneeling on one knee.
In an instant, its expression was extremely vivid.
Confusion, shock, anger, and shame.
"Shukaku, what's this? Why perform such a grand gesture?"
Kurama asked with an innocent face.
"You stinking fox!"
Shukaku struggled violently, nearly coughing up blood from the mockery.
When had it ever suffered such humiliation?
But it was useless.
One Hundred Percent Barehanded White Blade Catch was set to be determined by Chakra.
If the user's Chakra was higher, they could do whatever they wanted.
Nine tails indeed had far more Chakra than one tail.
Fortunately, Shukaku didn't know the truth; otherwise, it would have been even angrier.
But even so, it was already angry enough.
It was just a powerless rage in the end.
Shukaku was completely unable to turn the tables.
"Kurama, that's enough."
After waiting for a moment, Naruto came out to mediate.
Shukaku would have uses in the future; there was no need to make things so tragic.
"This is a matter between Tailed Beasts, don't you butt in."
Kurama clearly hadn't had enough fun.
"Really?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow, "Think about it carefully."
Kurama sensed a threat.
In the past, it wouldn't have cared about anything, but if it lost those fun things, it would be very boring.
"You're so annoying!"
Kurama dissatisfiedly withdrew the long sword.
The humiliated Shukaku couldn't help but let tears flow.
Its favorable impression of Naruto increased quite a bit.
Although Kurama was a dog, its Jinchuriki was still somewhat human.
Naruto opened his eyes, and the tails outside retracted, returning to normal after a moment.
Aside from the fatigue coming from all over his body, there was nothing unusual.
He looked at Shukaku, slightly puzzled that it hadn't dispersed its Tailed Beast form yet.
"..."
Shukaku didn't speak, but it noted this favor in its heart.
Its body gradually shrank.
Gaara appeared.
Naruto rubbed his chin; Shukaku's gaze just now seemed to be thanking him.
Well, hopefully, it would never know who the mastermind behind today's situation was.
"How do you feel?"
"I'm fine."
Gaara shook his head, his face looking somewhat abnormal because his Chakra was exhausted.
However, he would recover after resting for two days.
On the other hand, Shukaku would probably fall into a deep sleep again.
Because it had consumed an excessive amount of Chakra.
So, it must have lost the fight.
"I'll go get Fuyi."
Naruto had been worried that while the boss and the number nine were fighting, some random bystander would die, so he had sent this guy to Hozukijo in advance.
A few seconds later, he threw Fuyi to Gaara.
"Because of this barrier, a huge crowd has gathered outside. How do you plan to explain?"
"Akatsuki Organization."
Gaara said after a moment of thought.
Since becoming the Kazekage, his emotional intelligence and IQ had improved accordingly, or rather, they had been exercised.
Since Naruto was fighting inside the barrier and asked the question, he presumably didn't want others to know.
And coincidentally, Gaara didn't want them to know either.
After all, losing twice in a row would damage the Kazekage's reputation.
He didn't care himself, but some people would.
Naruto nodded in satisfaction.
Gaara doing this was the best choice.
"I suggest you declare Fuyi a rogue Ninja, to give the Fujiwara Clan an explanation."
Naruto suggested further.
Although he wanted to kill the man, there was no need to involve Sunagakure.
"I will."
Gaara did not refuse.
"I'll leave the rest to you; I'm going to find my teammates."
Naruto reclaimed the Kurama Chakra, and the barrier immediately vanished.
The still-blowing sandstorm began to spread outward.
The people outside couldn't help but squint their eyes; when they could finally see the situation, everyone was stunned into a daze.
A bottomless giant crater occupied their vision.
Quicksand in a state of utter chaos.
A complete mess.
It looked like a scene after the last Great Ninja War.
This was the thought of Asuma and the others.
Because in their experience, only thousands of Ninjas could achieve such destructive power.
"Is this something a human can do?"
Kankuro muttered to himself, his face showing shock.
"It's Shukaku."
Temari looked worried; she looked around and finally saw Gaara, hurrying over.
She inspected him carefully and found no injuries, only then breathing a sigh of relief.
Kankuro and the others also arrived immediately.
"Things are a bit complicated."
Gaara said calmly, "This isn't the place for explanations; everyone, please disperse."
Asuma and Kurenai Yuhi exchanged glances, then noticed the fallen Fuyi.
They initially wanted to say something but held back.
On the other side, Naruto quickly found Ino, Choji, and the others.
Under the guidance of Sunagakure, they were at a temporary shelter.
Naruto had left a Shadow Clone earlier, so his return didn't arouse suspicion.
Another hour passed.
Temari arrived and announced that the exam would continue.
The Genin were once again invigorated.
No one wanted to remain a Genin forever.
The continuation of the exam was naturally a great thing.
The sandstorm created by Fuyi had disappeared.
The Desert of Illusions returned to its usual calm.
For the rest of the journey, Naruto still didn't make much of a move, leaving things for Ino and Neji to handle.
Without any further mishaps, they completed the second stage of the exam.
The third stage's individual matches were canceled by Gaara, just like in the original work.
"Don't worry."
Gaara stood on the high platform and pressed his hands down; the clamor died away as he continued, "I have already sent your performances back to your respective villages; they will use them as a basis to judge whether you will be promoted."
The implication was that even if they didn't get both the Heaven and Earth scrolls, it wasn't considered a failure.
The ones most happy about this were none other than Neji's team.
Perhaps because Tenten had fallen into the ruins, their luck afterward had turned bad.
They only had Heaven scrolls.
If it weren't for Gaara's temporary change in the system, they would likely have missed out on becoming Chunin again.
After Gaara finished speaking, everyone went back to their own groups and villages.
"Asuma-sensei."
Ino waved her hand and said, "Stop chatting, your students are waiting for you."
"Kurenai, I'll be going now."
Asuma showed an apologetic expression.
What a blockhead.
Kurenai Yuhi smiled nonchalantly and said, "Wait, let's go back together."
"Okay!"
Asuma scratched his head and came before Ino, Choji, and Naruto.
He glanced at Naruto, thinking of the barrier that suspectedly contained Nine-Tailed Chakra.
But the Jinchuriki's identity was special, and since he couldn't be sure, he naturally couldn't just say anything.
"You three did well this time."
Asuma praised them generously.
He had originally thought Ino and Choji might end up just riding Naruto's coattails.
But he hadn't expected both of them to perform quite well.
Instead, Naruto, who didn't make much of a move, had missed out on many opportunities.
But he wasn't worried.
Naruto wasn't an ordinary Ninja.
Even if he remained a Genin for his whole life, he would still be the object of Konoha's greatest concern.
After a short rest, they officially headed back to the village.
On the way, Naruto took a trip to finish off Fuyi.
And by disguising himself as a member of the Akatsuki Organization, he successfully made Nagato take the fall.
"Ah, finally back."
Naruto opened his front door and couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
Seeing too much yellow was hard to take.
And besides being yellow, the desert was also hot and thirsty; how could it be as comfortable as home?
He slumped onto the sofa, looking at the ceiling, wanting to do nothing at all, just like a salted fish.
Hinata hadn't come back with him because she had been away from home for several days.
After all, she wasn't married into the family yet.
If Hyuga Hiashi knew that the first thing she did upon returning to the village was go to someone else's house, he would probably be sick with anger.
His sister-in-law Hanabi would also protest.
As Naruto watched, he suddenly thought of Orochimaru.
Was he going to give birth tomorrow?
Strictly speaking, using 'he' was no longer appropriate.
Naruto suddenly got up and appeared in Otogakure.
"Senior Kabuto, who's delivering the baby tomorrow?"
Yakushi Kabuto was stunned for a moment.
Why do you look so concerned?
It has nothing to do with you.
"I am."
Yakushi Kabuto thought for a bit; since this guy already knew tomorrow was the due date, knowing who was delivering wasn't any big deal.
He just complained in his heart, Sasuke, your undercover work is a bit too blatant.
Naruto suddenly felt like Yakushi Kabuto was acting like some honest man taking responsibility for another's child.
He coughed lightly and asked, "Senior Kabuto, you know how to deliver babies too?"
"What's so hard about that?"
Yakushi Kabuto said dissatisfiedly, "I am an excellent medical Ninja, after all."
"I'm not questioning Senior Kabuto's level."
Naruto waved his hand and said, "I just think there should be a distinction between men and women."
"..."
Yakushi Kabuto was flabbergasted.
What the hell do you mean distinction between men and women!
"And midwifery is a professional job; although you're strong at saving lives and healing the injured, you've never delivered a baby for anyone, have you?"
Naruto continued to ask.
"That, I haven't."
Yakushi Kabuto raised an eyebrow and said, "Then who do you want to find?"
"How about Tsunade and Shizune?"
Naruto thought of Tsunade's hemophobia and added Shizune.
If something could go wrong with this lineup, I'll feed Yakushi Kabuto to Aoda on the spot!
It's too painful; the writing might be a bit messy.